Homeowner? Renovating? You Could Be Liable if Someone Dies. CDM Regulations and Domestic Clients

Let me say this plainly: If you’re having building work done on your home, and a worker falls off the roof and dies, you could be held responsible.

Not the roofer.

Not the contractor.

You. The homeowner.

Because under the CDM Regulations 2015, you are considered a domestic client. And under the Building Safety Act, that role comes with serious legal duties.

⚠️ “I Didn’t Know” Won’t Protect You

If you don’t have proper scaffolding, If you hire a mate with a van off Facebook, If you don’t appoint someone competent to manage the job…and someone gets seriously injured, or worse, you may be criminally liable. And no, your home insurance won’t cover you.

🧱 CDM Regulations Apply to Your House Too

Most homeowners have never even heard of the Construction Design and Management (CDM) Regulations 2015, but they absolutely apply to you.

As a domestic client, you are legally required to:

• Appoint a Principal Designer (if more than one contractor is involved)

• Appoint a Principal Contractor

• Ensure those you hire are competent and insured

• Allow enough time and resources for the job to be carried out safely

If you don’t make these appointments in writing, those duties fall directly on you. Yes you could be held responsible for unsafe work you didn’t even understand was unsafe.

🔥 Real Talk: What Happens If Someone Falls?

Let’s say you want your roof done.

The builder says “don’t worry about scaffold, we’ll do it from ladders.”

You’re thinking, “great, it’ll save me £1,200.”

Then someone falls. Breaks their back. Or dies. HSE shows up. Insurance backs out. Now you’re the one under investigation. And your response “But I didn’t know” won’t be enough.

🏛 The Building Safety Act Isn’t Just for High-Rises

When I first sat in a workshop about the Golden Thread, I was told:

“It only applies to buildings over a certain height.”

I said: “You’ve got this wrong. It should apply to all buildings.”

Now it does. And that’s a very good thing.

Because whether you’re converting your loft or knocking through a wall, the same principles apply:

• Plan properly

• Use competent, qualified people

• Record decisions

• Manage risk

• Keep people safe

👷‍♀️Why You Should Hire a Project Manager (Like Me)

If you’re a homeowner planning a build, large or small, you don’t have time (or the legal knowledge) to navigate CDM, appoint the right contractors, check every RAMS, manage compliance, and track who’s on site and what they’re doing. But I do.

Hiring a qualified project manager with construction experience means:

• I’ll appoint competent people

• I’ll review their qualifications and insurance

• I’ll track site safety

• I’ll keep records and liaise with Building Control

• I’ll mitigate risk for you, before it becomes your problem

Let me take that legal responsibility off your shoulders, because the risk is real, and the consequences are life-changing.

If you want peace of mind, hire someone who knows the regulations and can enforce them — properly.

🧾 Don’t Knock a Wall Without Knowing the Law

Taking out a wall? You need:

• A structural engineer

• Building Control approval

• Proper sign-off

If you don’t get it?

• You’ll struggle to sell your home

• You could invalidate your insurance

• You could be liable for structural failure

And remember, homeowners will be asked to sign a declaration stating that:

• You hired competent people

• Designers and contractors signed off their responsibilities

• You followed all required safety procedures

No more shrugging it off. You will be held to account.

🛡 Final Thought: You’re Not “Just Renovating” — You’re Legally Managing a Construction Project

That’s the reality. And if you want to protect yourself, your family, and your finances, you need to take it seriously.

You wouldn’t let someone operate on you because they “seem to know what they’re doing.” So don’t hand over your house to someone just because they’re cheap or friendly.

📢 I’ll be sharing more advice on how domestic clients can stay safe and legally protected over on @TheUnfilteredFemaleSiteManager

✅ Want to book me as a project manager for your next build? Let’s talk. Because “not knowing” is no longer an excuse and the cost of getting it wrong could be far more than you expect.